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2002 BAM3 Another great picnic this year! We all had a great time and did a good deed. BAM3 is short for Bay Area M3. In July, I started getting emails from guys asking when BAM3 was gonna happen. They began to apply pressure telling me they couldn't wait for the event. I had to get the ball rolling quickly this year. I posted the invitation on the E30 M3 SIG. I also refer to this event as SIG FEST WEST. This year I wanted the event to be a bit more special. My goal was to use the event to raise money to help a sick young man. Tyler Warren was born with rare heart condition. Hours after he was born he was helicoptered to UCLA and had a lifesaving heart surgery. Growing up as a child, Tyler has had eight open-heart surgeries, two implanted pacemakers and two implanted deliberators. In 2000, he had a heart transplant. Tyler hopes for a brighter future but now suffers from complications and rejection. He recently turned 18 and graduated from high school. Within him beats a growing desire to be an independent adult, but at times his weak heart makes that dream difficult to achieve. He loves sports cars (especially older M3s) and would love to have his own cool car someday. While most 18 year old guys are thinking about joining a college frat, traveling or building their own sport car. Young adults with chronic illness, like Tyler, need to start keeping track of their medication, understanding their treatment options and planning for employment that will provide health insurance. Tyler marked his 18th birthday by visiting his doctor. He has received ten radiation treatments to stop his body from rejecting his transplanted heart. He wanted to visit the doctor by himself because he's now too old to be accompanied by his mom. "It's kind of embarrassing" Tyler says. Tyler gulps down more than 30 pills a day with a glass of milk at noon and at midnight. It's a very expensive staple that he isn't sure he'll be able to afford for the rest of his life. My goal for BAM3 2002 was to raise $500 for Tyler. I am very happy to say that we were able to raise $1,700 for Tyler. More than three times my goal. After posting the event invitation online which included a short story about Tyler several people mailed me donations. I can't tell you how touched I was by this act of generosity. Some people sent in donations as large as $100. Really incredible. Even though I did not want to have a raffle for prizes, many generous people came forward, on their own, and contributed items to help me with my fund-raiser for Tyler. Here are some folks that deserve recognition for making my event a complete success. Joe Schifini, Grant Bayless, Gary Vetick, Caroline Freeland, Tina Tharp, Brandon Wheaton, James Liu, Rob Ferrero, Lance Boicelli, Kevin Erdman, Bill Arnold, and the lovely Lynda Martin.
I knew some guys were coming as far away as Los Angeles but I never imagined BAM3 had real global appeal. I say this because a very nice young couple from Holland attended my event. They had heard about it back in Holland and while visiting San Francisco they hitched (yes hitch-hiked ) 17 miles out to Tiburon to make it to my event. Crazy!! The day began with the screaming wagon train of E30 M3s taking the twisties down Paradise Drive toward the park. You couldn't miss the sound of the cars coming to the park. Everyone arrived right on time at 10am sharp. So many M3s arrived at the same time it created a mini traffic jam getting into the park. A truly one-of-a-kind sight to see so many E30 M3s behind one another. Over 30 E30 M3s came to the event! There are so many great stories. Danny Tanaka brought some OJ and pastries for everyone. He proudly displayed his new set of gray leather Recaro SRD seats. Bill Arnold brought along his race car and his newest acquisition - a custom made white BMW pick up TRUCK. Tamara Hull brought her new red race car that replaced the dreaded *Sperminator*. Donna Seeley brought her infamous *Guido* sporting a name tag on the hood. Kevin Erdman brought along his race car wearing fresh road kill on the grill. Rumor has it that the road kill was cooked and eaten by the hillbillies from Sacramento. Kevin's little son, Charlie, proudly drove his own BMW around the event. Finally, many of the curious made their way to Gary Dee's super-charged E30 M3. Brandon Wheaton's car was hands down my favorite. It's gorgeous both in and out. The A-Pillar gauges set was a real treat for everyone to see. He managed to complete his red valve cover and plenum, as well as new leather Recaro SRDs just in time for the picnic. Fantastic job Brandon. There were tons of after-market eye candy from AC Schnitzer, Sparco, MOMO, Alpina, Hartge, Dinan, Recaro and many many more goodies .......even an M3 with a Yakima bike/ski rack. Rob Ferraro and Lance Boicelli kindly offered their expertise to adjust anyone's throttle synch for a donation to Tyler. Thanks guys! We also had a treat from some surprise visitors. A small group of Mercedes 190E owners came by to show us that the DTM rivalry is still here. You could almost feel the tension between these two historic racing marques. GRrrrr! The picnic was just terrific. We had a little delay getting the charcoal going but we had plenty of BMW literature to read (thanks Ken at SONNEN BMW) while we waited. There was plenty of food to go around and everyone shared the goodies they had brought. We even had a small keg of yummy raspberry wheat beer!! In true BAM3 tradition, Greg Coffeng brought his high performance grilling tools enclosed in a trick carrying case. You gotta see this guys! The raffle was a chance for me to be a complete cornball again. This year I brought my home made Bimmer-Gong to liven the festivities. Thanks to Talia and Isabella Martin who were my helpful young assistants. Some lucky guys walked away with some real nice BMW gear like duffel bags, hats, t-shirts, clocks, oil filters, tire gauges, fuel filters, belts, sport mirrors, Bimmer mags and much more. We even had a genuine *Hula Guy* for when the women get behind the wheel. The winner of the Hula Guy, Jeremy Russell, says his wife just loves to make it jiggle! The two grand prizes were auctioned off. The BMW radio controlled LMR race car donated by SONNEN BMW (retail $600l) and the Blue SAMCO Lifetime Silicone Hose Set (retail $400) donated by TAYLOR AUTOSPORT. The high bidder for both items was Joe Schifini. Way to go Joe! The event concluded with a drive to a large parking lot for a group photo, then we all drove in a pack through the scenic Marin Headlands. Absolutely breathtaking views. Next year the only change I plan to make is everyone will be wearing ///M name tags. It's kinda hard remembering everyone's name. It will also let all the guys know that the attractive brunette (the hottie in red shorts) is my girlfriend.......and she's not available. A huge THANK YOU to everyone who made this event a complete success. Tyler Warren and his family also extend their thanks to all. Until next year!.........whew! Paul DaCruz
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